


a dream you can't quite place

by retts



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Anal Sex, Barebacking, Eddie Kaspbrak Loves Richie Tozier, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Motels, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Running Away, Soft Eddie Kaspbrak, Soft Richie Tozier, ill advised naked photos, my god they are so in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:42:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23014960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/retts/pseuds/retts
Summary: Eddie frowned, his fingers making random patterns on the inside of Richie’s thigh. Richie took another picture of him lying on his lap. Eddie let him, the silence wrapping around them as he marshalled his thoughts. It wasn’t unusual for Richie to stall real conversations, and it wasn’t unusual for Eddie to wait him out. Sooner or later, Richie was going to cave and spill whatever it was that bothered him. Eddie didn’t enjoy talking about feelings and serious things more than anyone else, but he fiercely valued honest and open conversation after the subterfuge and manipulation and lies he went through with his own mother.Richie took photos of him three more times, cooing over each one even though Eddie stayed in the same position. His finger kept up its crawl, spelling out words that popped into his head: car, goodbye, losers, beach, Richie, Eddie, forever, Richie, Richie, Richie, Richie. Eddie felt Richie bend down, his arm brushing the top of his head, and take a close up picture of his finger looping through theh.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 9
Kudos: 266





	a dream you can't quite place

**Author's Note:**

> well, this i wrote in three days, so seriously, the reddie plot bunnies are chewing me and spitting my bones back out 
> 
> anyway, i seriously love eddie and richie getting what they deserve: running away into the sunset 
> 
> hear that, stephen king?!
> 
> also, finally, porn!

There was a flash and a whirr, and Eddie woke up blinking at the ceiling. Dazed, he turned his head to the side and saw Richie sitting naked and cross-legged beside him, pulling the film out of the slot and flapping it to help it dry. His hair was sticking up all over the place, his eyes smudged with dark shadows from behind his eyeglasses. Richie looked wild. He looked thin and weary, faded at the edges, but a grin spread on his face when he noticed Eddie was awake. 

‘Hey, there, Sleeping Beauty,’ said Richie, extending his foot to nudge Eddie on the side. ‘Shouldn’t you wake up only after Prince Charming gives you true love's kiss?’

‘If I waited for that, I’d be asleep for eternity,’ said Eddie with a yawn. He turned on his side to face him, yanking the blankets higher up his chest, pillowing his head on his arm. 'And I think you're mixing fairy tales.'

Richie bent down and kissed him lightly, then deeply, tongue snaking inside for a taste. He detoured a nuzzle on Eddie’s nose. ‘I came all the way here, fought monsters and the evil Queen for you, so I might as well get a kiss for my troubles even though you’re already awake.’

That sent a pang through Eddie. He cupped the side of Richie’s face, and then shoved him lightly away. ‘Are you my Prince Charming, Rich?’

‘The one and only.’ He straightened and looked at the developed photo with a smile. He turned it over to show Eddie, who made a face when he saw himself sleeping with his mouth slightly open.

Eddie took the film and looked at it closer. He was on his back but his hips were angled, one leg folded under the other, and the blanket pooled low on his groin that left little to the imagination. His skin was beyond white, bleached by the flash. ‘How long was I out?’

‘Just an hour or over.’

‘Ugh, that’s why I feel more tired than before I took a nap. Too fucking short.’ Eddie dropped the photo on the bed and raised his arms in a stretch. He saw a burst of reddish light on the inside of his closed eyelids and heard the distinct mechanical whine as the picture was printed on the spot. He relaxed and opened his eyes. ‘You’re taking pictures of me. Naked.’

Richie nodded as he lowered the Polaroid. ‘I’m taking pictures of you naked while I’m also naked. We’re even.’ He gestured at his body, which Eddie glanced at and appreciated like always, although he hid it well. Richie already knew how much Eddie loved him and there was no need to feed his ego.

‘Why?’ Eddie asked, the favourite question of the long-suffering, which he was.

The film dropped, helped by gravity, and Richie took another snapshot of him. Flash. Whirr. ‘Because I want to. You’re beautiful. Smile for me.’ Drop. Eddie flipped him off. Flash. Whirr. ‘Perfect!’ Drop.

‘Richie.’

‘Hmm, yeah, Eds?’ Richie twisted around and reached for something on the floor, the muscles on his chest and back and neck straining. Eddie appreciated the view even more. He placed a hand on Richie’s knee as if to steady him but it was really to stroke the pale skin with his fingers. Richie straightened and shoved his hair back from his face. When he let go, the thick mass flopped back into place. Eddie constantly nagged at Richie to cut it down to a respectable length but every time Richie decided to actually do it, Eddie would find some way to distract him, usually with his mouth.

Eddie pushed up with his elbow, shoving the film squares aside so he could partially drape himself on Richie’s lap, the sheet dragging down his body and stopping halfway around his hip. Richie’s gaze was instantly drawn to it and he lifted the camera again.

Eddie grabbed the newly printed photo before Richie could. ‘Tell me.’

‘Tell you what, Spaghetti?’ Richie asked, slipping a new cartridge into the Polaroid. He angled his head to look at the picture in Eddie’s hand and made a pleased sound low in his throat. ‘Oh, that’s nice. Definitely a keeper.’

‘The photos,’ said Eddie, slapping the film onto Richie’s skin with his palm, and continued in a sharpening tone, ‘the no sleeping, Richie. You haven’t slept since we left Derry. Even before then.’ He let go so he could reach up and brush his fingers under Richie’s thick glasses, hoping he could wipe away the deep smudges below his eyes. There was a hunted look in them. In the car, he had kept glancing at the rearview mirror, then at Eddie, then back at the mirror. He’d been quiet even as freedom pushed them farther away from that nightmare town, his foot heavy on the gas pedal. Out of the corner of his eye, Eddie had seen Richie’s tight hands on the steering wheel, the knuckles protruding with the strength of his grip.

The smile Richie gave was as sharp as his cheekbones. ‘Of course I’ve been sleeping, Eds. Who else has been sleeping beside you, huh?’

Eddie frowned, his fingers making random patterns on the inside of Richie’s thigh. Richie took another picture of him lying on his lap. Eddie let him, the silence wrapping around them as he marshalled his thoughts. It wasn’t unusual for Richie to stall real conversations, and it wasn’t unusual for Eddie to wait him out. Sooner or later, Richie was going to cave and spill whatever it was that bothered him. Eddie didn’t enjoy talking about feelings and serious things more than anyone else, but he fiercely valued honest and open conversation after the subterfuge and manipulation and lies he went through with his own mother.

Richie took photos of him three more times, cooing over each one even though Eddie stayed in the same position. His finger kept up its crawl, spelling out words that popped into his head: car, goodbye, losers, beach, Richie, Eddie, forever, Richie, Richie, Richie, Richie. Eddie felt Richie bend down, his arm brushing the top of his head, and take a close up picture of his finger looping through the _h_.

‘That’s really sweet, Eds,’ said Richie and cleared his throat, ‘but if you keep that up, I can’t be held responsible for my actions.’

Eddie pushed up on his elbows, eyes zeroing on the vee of Richie’s folded legs.

Richie was getting hard, his cock stirring from its nest of thick curls. Eddie raised an eyebrow at it, and then aimed it up at Richie.

Shrugging, Richie gestured at his lap. ‘It’s because you’re so near to it, Eds. It just _knows_. You’ve got a direct line to my dick.’ 

Eddie didn’t bother to retort because what else could he say when it was the absolute truth? He was equally enamoured with the sight in front of him. Richie was circumcised. The head of his cock was prominently displayed at all times, no foreskin to hide in. The skin was pink all over, mostly smooth except for the ridges and veins that felt good in Eddie’s hand, mouth, and ass. Watching it rise and stand up proudly from a close distance was new and exciting, making Eddie clench his belly. They never had this kind of luxury back in Derry where they could spend hours naked and entwined with each other. Here, there weren’t counting down the seconds along to an internal clock that told them when they had to separate and go back to their respective miserable homes.

Eddie dragged his thumb up to the already moist head. He moved closer, licking his lips. He heard Richie suck in a loud breath. He could smell Richie even more now, the scent growing muskier, more mouthwatering. Richie was thickening in his hand.

Suddenly, there was a flash of light. Eddie blinked and looked up. Richie had pointed the camera down and taken a snapshot of his dick. Eddie burst out in shocked laughter, releasing Richie’s dick to slap his thigh hard enough to leave a pink splotch.

‘Oh, my fucking God, Richie!’

Richie leered down at him. ‘It’s a great souvenir, don’t you think? For the Richie Tozier Ride, the hardest fun you’ll ever have. All aboard!’

Eddie dropped his forehead on Richie’s knee and groaned. ‘Holy shit, that’s terrible.’

‘You say that but you’ve had the time of your life on this ride.’ Richie nudged the side of Eddie’s head and he looked back up, eyes going wide when the first thing he saw was the Polaroid of Richie’s dick, immortalised at half-mast, with Eddie’s hand wrapped possessively around it. The angle of the shot made Eddie’s hand look even smaller, made Richie's dick look even bigger. He glanced at the hand in question, then moved it away.

Richie spluttered a protest above him. ‘No, Eds, come on!'

‘Not until you tell me what I want to know.’

Richie flinched, shoulders drawing up to his ears in a decidedly defensive gesture. His mouth flattened in a straight line. The air between them lost some of its playfulness. Eddie remained firm but he settled back down in front of Richie, coiling by his knees and reaching for one of his hands. He took the camera and set it down on the bed and then entwined their fingers, squeezing gently. Letting Richie know he could talk and that he was sorry for making Richie talk (this, punctuated with a kiss to his bony knee).

Eventually, Richie met his gaze. Eddie held it, lips curling softly. Richie’s other hand lowered and bumped against Eddie’s cheek, and then lingered. Eddie leaned into the touch.

‘What is it, Rich?’ Eddie asked kindly.

There was an added layer of vulnerability in having conversations in the nude. Richie chewed on his bottom lip, eyes intent on Eddie. ‘You’re beautiful, Eds,’ he said, ‘like, really, really beautiful.’

Eddie still blushed whenever Richie complimented him. Eddie didn’t think that Richie was trying to distract him with flattery, and so he said, a bit shyly, ‘Thank you.’

A smile loosened Richie’s lips. There was something poignant about the way he looked, then — slouching, curling towards Eddie, the set of his eyes and mouth and jaw conveying a hurt that Eddie wanted to erase.

Richie said, ‘And I love you, like, a whole lot. A whole _fucking_ lot, Eds. Huge. Beyond Grand Canyon levels. Niagara Falls. Uh, what else is big? Bigger than freaking Texas.’ 

Eddie couldn’t help rolling his eyes. ‘I get it, Richie. I love you, too.’

He cupped Eddie’s face with both hands this time. ‘Yeah, so you know this is the real deal. We both know. You’re the one, Spaghetti. And I can’t lose you.’

It was the last thing Eddie expected him to say. ‘Lose me? The fuck, Richie? We’re literally running away to the other side of the country together!’

Richie nodded, then shook his head. ‘No, you don’t get it. I suddenly remembered when we all had that dream, you know? Last few weeks of summer, the seven of us sharing one dream.’ Richie swallowed and met Eddie’s eyes, the fear stark in them. ‘We forgot, Eds. Each other, the fucking clown, everything. We left Derry and there was a gaping hole in our heads and in our lives because we didn’t remember each other. I didn’t even know _you_ , Eddie. And then we _forgot_ the dream. Was it a warning? A threat?’ A look of horror rolled across his face like a wave, and his hands raked through his hair. ‘I thought — we left, we made it, you and I, but what if — what if I go to sleep or something and then just completely forget about you when I wake up? I can’t do that, Eds. And the worst thing is that I probably won’t even notice.’ 

Eddie was quiet. He didn’t know what to say. He knew what he felt, though, and it was the absurd, overwhelming, and sincere love he had for Richie, the central point that the rest of his life revolved around. He could say it again for the hundred thousandth time or he could do something else.

Eddie lifted himself up until he could bite Richie’s inner thigh, teeth clamping down lightly. Richie gasped and his knee jerked, but Eddie held on for one more second and then let go. Richie’s half-hard cock bobbed in front of him. His mouth watered. Eddie fucking loved that cock, probably more than he loved Richie himself. Eddie raised his chin and kissed it once, demurely, on its mushroom head. He smelled musky but still clean. Richie’s thighs quivered under Eddie’s fingers. His dick was hardening before his very eyes, but Eddie wanted something else. He opened his mouth wide (even at half mast, it was big) and sank down on Richie’s cock until his nose tickled from the nest of pubic hair. His tongue swirled along the underside, enticing it to harden more, grow bigger, really choke him. Eddie’s heart beat hard in his chest, trying to breathe without gasping and ignoring his own body’s intense reaction from having Richie’s dick in his mouth. It wasn’t a new thing, far from it, but it was the first blowjob out of Derry, their strings cut and no longer tethering them to that shithole.

Above him, there came a snap and flare, then a buzz. Eddie closed his eyes and rubbed his thighs together with excitement like a thirteen year old boy with his first erection. Richie was taking photos again. Eddie felt something fall on top of his head and slide off. The Polaroid. Eddie’s nerve endings drew taut, waiting for another snap. They shouldn’t, they _really_ shouldn’t, but those loose strings made them reckless. There was no one to constantly watch out for anymore.

Eddie began to suck, using his cheek muscles and the ones in his throat, gently moving his head up and down. Richie’s hips jerked up in tiny motions, unable to move much in his current position. Richie breathed harshly, his flat stomach almost concave with how tense he was.

Richie’s voice was shredded ribbons when he spoke. ‘Eds, my love, look up.’

Fingers cradled Eddie’s jaw, the tips pressing into his cheek to feel the intrusion in his mouth. Richie released a harsh breath. His hand tightened and exerted upward pressure. Eddie sucked on the way up, dragging his bottom lip, and his teeth carefully closed around the crown, tongue swirling. He angled his head back, chin pressed against Richie’s wet dick, and looked up at Richie through his eyelashes.

‘Oh, _shit_ ,’ Richie hissed, his hands shaking as he took a photo. Eddie blinked away the stars in his eyes. ‘Eds — sugar plum — you’re killing me.’ 

_Don’t call me that_ , Eddie thought, transmitting it to Richie with his eyes. And teeth. 

Richie literally jolted, mouth falling open around a strangled moan. His glasses slipped down and he hastily shoved them back up his nose. ‘OK, OK, fuck, you’re a monster. My terrible, little monster. Say cheese.’

He was incorrigible. Eddie was mid-lick when the flash went off again. His own dick was rubbing against the bed. Sweat slid down his back. Eddie lowered his hand and closed around himself. Richie sucked in a sharp breath, then let it out as a whistle. The photo developed and he looked at it with wide eyes, then flipped it over for Eddie. Eddie’s cheeks burned hotter and he thrust into his hand. The picture was slightly blurry but still obscene. The first thing he saw was his mouth skimming the top of Richie’s dick. His freckles stood out starkly. His body was splayed on the bed in front of Richie’s lap and the blanket pooled around Eddie’s calves. There was no hiding the fist he had around his dick, visible from the sideways tilt of his body, and the way his toes flexed with sensation.

Pleasure pricked deeply into Eddie’s skin. He licked the taste of Richie from his mouth. It was disgusting but it made him hornier. Sex was a repulsive act — the places they stuck their mouths and dicks into — but it was one of the best things in the world. And he wanted the whole thing. Now.

Eddie climbed up on Richie’s lap and sank down on his thick cock. He was still a little loose from the sex earlier in the backseat of the car, both of them going crazy after driving for almost 16 hours even with the scheduled stops at the stupid local landmarks Richie had found. They’d parked somewhere empty and secluded, knowing the stupid risk they were taking out in the open and in the middle of nowhere. Two boys fucking. God, it had been dangerous and so, so hot. This was good, too, on a bed with the door locked, Richie shoving the expensive camera aside to grip Eddie’s hips and guide him up and down, up and down, up and down. Richie could do little with the way he had his legs crossed and Eddie loved riding him like this, controlling the speed and rhythm and how deep he could take Richie in.

It burned from too little preparation but Richie’s eyes sparked from the extra friction. There was a rawness to the sensation that knocked the breath from Eddie’s lungs. He dug his fingernails into Richie’s shoulders. Richie grunted and moaned under him when he added a twist to his hips every time he jerked up, his hands moving to pinch and tweak Eddie’s nipples. They were experts in quiet sex, in fast and stolen quickies with the possibility of getting caught hanging over them. Maybe fucking in the open highway hadn’t been a surprise, after all. Here in the motel, they still had to stifle their noises, the walls too thin, aware that there were people staying in the rooms on either side of them, possibly serial killers. The door and windows were locked tight, the curtains drawn. Eddie bit down hard on his bottom lip when Richie’s cock hit his prostate. He was an expert, yes, but it didn’t mean it was easy. Sometimes, it was so good that he couldn’t help himself.

‘Found it,’ gasped Richie, grinning wide, and unfolded his legs and spun them around until Eddie was on his belly, empty for a quick moment, until Richie lifted his ass up in the air and thrust back in. The move was straight out of a porno and Eddie bit down on the sheets and screamed with the back of his throat. Richie angled Eddie’s hips and Eddie thought, _oh fuck_. 

‘Found it again, Eds.’

‘Fuck, yes,’ whimpered Eddie, eyes clenched shut, his body sparking all the way to its edges, fingertips and toes. ‘Fuck me harder, Rich.’ He got his elbows under him, head bent low and his ass in the air. His dick leaked and swung with every thrust. If Eddie touched himself now, he’d blow. He kept his fists tightly under his face. Richie plowed into him, a heavy weight draping on his back. His arms bracketed Eddie on either side, trapping him under him. His mouth closed over Eddie’s nape, teeth and tongue and all. Like a fucking animal. Eddie mewled, weak with pleasure.

Richie dragged his tongue across his bite mark, which was a different throbbing sensation from the one between Eddie’s legs. ‘God, Spaghetti, you’re so hot. Fuck, I love this. I love you so much. Stay, please. I can’t live without you.’

Eddie reached behind him and blindly grabbed for Richie. His fingers tangled in Richie’s hair, twisted and yanked. ‘Stop saying that shit.’

Eddie heard him breathing harshly into his ear. ‘I don’t want to be alone, Eds.’

‘Jerkface, how can you say that when you’re literally inside me?’ He clenched around Richie and choked on a moan at the delicious drag of cock out of him.

Richie laughed breathlessly, although it came out sounding more like a sob. More of his weight settled down on Eddie, pinning him. Preventing his escape. As if Eddie would ever leave him. They’d gone through hell and back together. They’d escaped Derry together. Eddie tried to say it but Richie fucked into him even deeper, barely pulling out and just screwing his cock inside him. White heat flashed through Eddie.

‘Oh, God, oh, God, shut _up_ , I’m so close — ’ Eddie started trembling, gasping for air, and he squirmed an arm down to reach for his dick but Richie was unyielding around him. ‘ _Richie_.’ 

‘Shhhh.’ Richie nosed under Eddie’s ear, voice low and unsteady. ‘Come on my cock, Eds. Nothing else, just me.’ His hips shifted and his dick pressed relentlessly on Eddie’s sweet spot. Eddie’s balls and cock ached for release but it was just out of reach.

Eddie threw his head back, knocking on Richie’s shoulder. ‘Fuck, Richie, fuck you, I need my hand!’

‘Nuh-uh, come on, Eds, you can do it. I’m almost there, too. You drive me crazy, you know that?’ Richie bit him on the shoulder, sucked on his skin. Eddie gritted his teeth and closed his eyes and felt every push and pull and drag inside of him, the sweat between their bodies that turned every motion slick and sensual, the harsh breath blowing against his ear, the point of Richie’s nose prodding under his jaw, the shape of his glasses pressing into his throat. He felt and he listened and he savoured and he was overwhelmed. Richie’s tongue poked into his ear. The slight, wet sensation started a spark that turned into a blaze and caught everywhere at once. Eddie’s teeth unclamped from his bottom lip as pleasure consumed him from the inside out. Richie moaned and held him tight, going up to his knees and dragging Eddie with him by the chest, plunging even deeper, his rhythm breaking even as he fucked Eddie harder and faster through his orgasm. Eddie’s mouth dropped open in a silent scream.

A heartbeat later, Richie muffled a cry into the crook of Eddie’s neck, all panting breaths and murmuring _Eddie, Eddie, Eddie_ as he came. Richie pumped him full of come, hips grinding into his ass. It was filthy, and wet, and warm. Eddie shuddered as another throb of pleasure hit him.

It took a while before Eddie was coherent. His throat ached, his hips and ass hurt, but everything else was steeped in a honeyed glow. Richie was a dead-weight on top of him, limbs spread out like tentacles, still plugging him. Every now and then, Richie shifted his hips, the mess inside Eddie squelching. 

‘Stop,’ he moaned on the fourth time this happened, Richie’s dick still electrifying even as it softened.

Richie huffed out a drowsy laugh, nuzzling into the damp hair at the base of Eddie’s skull. ‘Feels good, doesn’t it?’

‘It’s gross,’ lied Eddie, shrugging his shoulder to try and dislodge Richie. Instead, Richie snuggled even closer, his arms and legs looping around the entirety of Eddie because he was an actual giant. Eddie sighed, content.

It didn’t take long, however, for the heat and the sweat and the drying come to bother Eddie. Eddie squirmed, trying to move onto his back without pushing Richie off, and they both gasped when Richie’s cock slipped free, releasing a trickle of sticky come down the back of his thighs. Making a face, Eddie looked at Richie, and Richie sighed as he disentangled himself, pulling his glasses free to check they weren't broken and slipping them back on. He grabbed the pillow from the unused second bed and stripped it of its covering. Eddie sat up, hand going to his ass to catch some of the spillage. 

‘I will always hate this,’ Eddie grumbled. ‘We’re so using a condom next time.’

Richie turned around with a smirk, climbing back on the bed and wiping Eddie’s thighs and back with the pillowcase. Eddie’s hands were last, and when Richie was done, he threw the fabric carelessly on the floor and took Eddie’s hands in his, turned them over, and dropped kisses all over his knuckles. ‘No, we’re not,’ said Richie with a knowing smile, looking up at him through his long eyelashes, ‘because you’re too impatient, Eds. You love feeling me without anything between us, right? You love it more when I come inside you – you _beg_ me to mess you up.’

Eddie snorted, turning away, but Richie swooped down and scooped him up and threw him on the bed, and then jumped on him with a small whoop. They giggled, bodies rolling and entangling, until Eddie was pinned down by Richie.

‘Ow, ow, something’s poking me,’ whined Eddie, wriggling and arching his spine.

Richie reached under him and swept out the Polaroids, counting each one as he picked them up. He fanned them out in his hands, smiling crookedly as he showed Eddie. ‘Can we keep them?’

Eddie eyed the depravity in those photos, lips pursed. They should burn it as soon as possible. Leaving behind evidence was risky. Eddie met Richie’s eyes, the _no_ on his lips, but when he opened his mouth, he said, ‘Yes.’

Richie beamed at him, darting forward to kiss his cheek. ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you, Spaghetti! Now, I have a literal spank bank!’

Eddie spluttered, ‘Richie, no!’

‘No takebacks, sweetheart.’ Richie kissed the stack of photos and carefully placed them on the bedside table, then plopped his Polaroid camera on top. Eddie had half a mind to sneak the pictures out and set them on fire behind when Richie was occupied. But then, what could occupy his attention so thoroughly if not Eddie? Damn it. 

Richie kissed Eddie loudly on the mouth and sank back down next to him. ‘So, hello, we meet again,’ said Richie, rubbing their noses together. Eddie carefully pulled Richie's smudge glasses away, folded the arms, and set it safely aside. Sighing, Richie tucked his head under Eddie’s chin. Eddie flattened Richie’s hair so it didn’t tickle his jaw too much and wrapped an arm around him. Richie suddenly laughed, muffling it into Eddie’s collarbones.

‘What?’

‘You’re a sneaky, saucy minx, Eddie Spaghetti.’

‘What, me?’

‘Yeah, you, don’t even pretend to be innocent. There I was, pouring my darkest fears to you, and you decided to fuck my brains out.’

Eddie made a protesting sound, heat filling his cheeks because that was exactly what happened.

‘Don’t sweat it, Spaghetti Man. I’m definitely not complaining. It took my mind off things and I’m sleepy. You win.’

Frowning, Eddie pushed a curl away from Richie’s forehead. He stared down at the fresh scratches on Richie’s shoulder. ‘It wasn’t a game, Rich. I just — you were so stressed out and I only wanted you to feel better.’

Richie snickered, tipping his head back and meeting Eddie’s gaze upside down. ‘You definitely did that, Eds. I feel so much better.’

Eddie kissed his forehead, then raked back the persistently errant curl with, tucking it behind Richie’s ear. ‘What you said, though. I honestly don’t remember it, Richie. I’m sorry.’

‘Shit, no, don’t be sorry.’ Richie moved until he was on his side, their chests and hips pressed together. ‘I’m fucking glad you don’t remember it, Eds. It’s a horrible thing. You don’t deserve to suffer.’

‘You don’t deserve to suffer, either,’ said Eddie hotly.

Richie gave a bitter smile and a shrug; _what can you do?_

‘You know what, it doesn’t matter,’ Eddie declared with a decisive nod, grabbing Richie’s chin and tilting it up towards him. ‘It’s not going to happen. I won’t forget you, you won’t forget me. I’ll kill that clown with my bare hands if it tries to mess with us again. I’m going to protect you, Richie. We’re going to have the best goddamn life, I promise.’ He sealed it with a brief but blistering kiss.

Richie blinked at him and then broke into a heartbreaking smile. Eddie’s heart skipped a beat.

‘Say you believe me,’ Eddie demanded. He felt like he could actually hurt somebody — all five feet and six inches of him — if they tried to hurt Richie first.

Richie ducked his head and kissed Eddie on the left side of the chest. ‘I believe you, Eds.’

Then, he yawned, big and wide, jaw cracking.

Eddie urged Richie to lay his head down on his chest. ‘Sleep, you idiot, since you’re the one who insisted on driving the whole way and I let you because, Jesus Christ, I’m a fucking idiot, same as you, so you better be well rested if you want to be behind the fucking wheel tomorrow!’

Richie smiled, closing his eyes. ‘You say the sweetest things to send me off to dreamland.’

‘I will strangle you until you lose consciousness,’ threatened Eddie, twitching a smile as he dragged the (thankfully clean and dry) blankets over them. He draped a leg over Richie’s knees and snuggled into his shoulder, pressing a kiss to the knob at the end.

‘A second ago you were promising to murder on my behalf,’ Richie whispered, already fading, the corners of his lips raised in a faint smile that accompanied him to sleep.

Eddie listened to Richie’s quiet breathing, his hand curled protectively over Richie’s heart. He was wide awake despite his orgasm, teeth nibbling the inside of his lip. Some of Richie’s worry had sunk into him. Eddie should have thought about it before. He had, actually, but leaving behind Derry for miles and miles and miles had made him believe, foolishly, that nothing could go wrong anymore. Pennywise couldn’t get to them after breaking free. It was well and truly dead. They were free, he and Richie and the rest of the Losers. Not only from that fateful summer of 1989 but from the jagged edges of their childhood, from parents who didn’t care or cared too much. He and Richie could start somewhere new and bright, or better yet, continue what they had already built together. The possibility that he could be forced to forget Richie made ants crawl under his skin. It was beyond cruel. He and Richie were done looking; they were sealed together, they were soulmates, what the fuck ever the label was for the kind of love they had planted and nurtured and made bloom between them.

‘I’ll never let him go,’ said Eddie softly but fiercely, glaring at the darkness in the corner of the room where the light from the bedside lamp couldn’t reach. ‘You can’t take him away from me no matter what you do, you stupid, fucking clown. You’re dead. And if you’re not, fuck you. _Fuck_. _You_. Bring it on, bitch. We're not in Derry anymore. We’re going to fight you together and we’ll be unstoppable. Just you watch us.’ 

There was no reply. No red hair, no yellow eyes, no sharp teeth leapt out from the shadows. There was only Richie’s soft snoring, the rhythmic whirring of the ceiling fan above them.

It was gone. Ground into dust under their heels and left in their nightmares. Still, Eddie’s protective embrace didn’t slacken.

Richie stirred but didn’t wake up, turning his face away from Eddie, and Eddie curled closer and kissed his shoulder again. Furious and scared, Eddie kept watch over Richie until he, too, fell asleep. Nothing bad happened in his dreams, and nothing bad happened in his waking hours the next day, either.

(And the next day.)

(And the next day.)

(And the next day — week — month — year — in the near future — the far future — )

(You get the idea.)

(It's happily ever after, if you didn’t.)

**Author's Note:**

> please show me some love by leaving kudos and comments :)
> 
> come talk to me about reddie being in love at clarespace.tumblr.com


End file.
